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Sorcery Node
This article pertains specifically to the '''Sorcery Node', and explains only how it is different from other Nodes. For information about how Nodes work in general, see Node.'' A Sorcery Node is a type of Terrain Special, and one of 3 different types of Nodes in the game. It is a superior type of Terrain Special, acting simultaneously as a source, an Encounter Zone, and a special terrain type. Initially, Sorcery Nodes are guarded by a contingent of Fantastic Units. Once these have been removed, any Wizard may send a or to Meld with the Node, thus acquiring a constant input of based on the Node's coverage area. A Sorcery Node on the Plane of Myrror (which can have a 10 - 20 tile zone of influence) produces more than one located on Arcanus (that can cover between 5 - 10 tiles), but is usually also protected by much more powerful creatures. Typically, several Sorcery Nodes are placed randomly around the map at the start of the game, and cannot be removed or added. The terrain under a Sorcery Node is always changed into a special type of Grassland tile, which provides higher-than-normal availability in terms of its benefits to nearby Towns. The presence of the Sorcery Node itself causes oddities in the magical field. It is much harder to successfully cast non- spells during combat at a Sorcery Node. Also, the output of from the Node boosts the abilities of all Fantastic Units during any battle within the Node's area of influence. Sorcery Nodes react to several types of "Conjunction" Events. During a Sorcery Conjunction, the Node produces twice as much as normal. During other Conjunctions, it may produce half, or no at all. Description The Sorcery Node is a location where the barrier between the primal planes (Arcanus and Myrror) and the is weak, allowing to seep through in great quantities. This seepage of energy causes a shimmering lake to form around the Node itself. Also, creatures from the may cross through from their native Plane into the material Planes, and will aggressively protect the Node against anyone who dares approach it. On the overland map, Sorcery Nodes appear as small lakes. The lake's water glows a bright blue, and should be easily distinguishable from any regular inland lake, especially on the otherwise-dank surface of Myrror. Distribution and Terrain The game will randomly generate Sorcery Nodes on the map when creating the world for a new campaign. The number of Sorcery Nodes appearing on any map and the locations of these Nodes are both random. It is thus possible to get a map with very few Sorcery Nodes on either Plane. While it is also theoretically possible to have no Sorcery Node on one of the Planes, the probability of this is extremely low in game versions v1.1+ (the general article on Nodes explores Node generation in more detail). Although the Sorcery Node is essentially a lake, its tile is still a land tile, making it passable for and units, but not ones. It will show up as Grassland when using the Surveyor (F1) tool, but unlike regular Grassland, it does not hinder the movement of Mountaineer units. It does not enable Towns to construct the Shipwrights' Guild building line as settling adjacent to an inland lake would. However, Sorcery Nodes are also slightly better than normal Grassland tiles in terms of the benefits they provide to nearby Towns (as explained below). It is not possible to alter the tile underneath a Sorcery Node with terrain-altering spells like or . Building Settlements on top of a Sorcery Node is also prohibited. It is, however, possible to build a Road or Enchanted Road across the Node. Terrain Bonuses When inspected using the Surveyor (F1) tool, Sorcery Nodes display their terrain type as Grassland. While this is correct with regards to Movement Allowances through this tile, it is actually wrong in terms of its Food Availability. Rather than the usual provided by regular Grassland tiles, a Sorcery Node is slightly more beneficial in terms of farming, and has available on it instead, similar to River tiles. For the purposes of calculating the Maximum Population if a Settlement was to be founded on a tile, the Surveyor (F1) does use the correct value of for Sorcery Nodes, it only displays the wrong information when mousing over the tile directly (where Towns may not be created anyway). Food Availability, also known as the Base Food Level, determines both a Town's Maximum Population (and Population Growth as a consequence of that), and its efficiency treshold. This latter value sets out the amount of that can be harvested by Farmers before their contribution to the output of the Town is cut in half. Encounter Zone | ZoneType = Node }} Combat in a Sorcery Node Whenever combat occurs within the same tile as a Sorcery Node, or even within its vicinity, special rules come into effect that may alter the outcome significantly. Generally-speaking, -wielding wizards will have a relatively easier time doing battle in this area, whereas other wizards may encounter considerable difficulties. As a result, the Sorcery Node can also be a strategic asset. *During battle inside the Sorcery Node's own tile, the node is capable of dispelling any non- spells as they are being cast. *During combat on any of the tiles in the Sorcery Node's area of influence, all Fantastic Units receive powerful bonuses to their combat stats. Both of these effects are visible when clicking the "Info" button during battle. This is a good way of telling whether combat is taking place within a Node's area of influence (and is the only way of doing this if the Node has not yet been Melded with). Sorcery Node Dispelling Aura The massive output of energy from the Sorcery Node interferes with the casting of combat spells. During battles that take place on the same tile where the Sorcery Node itself is, any attempt to cast a combat spell of any kind that is not from the Realm (including spells) must face being countered by the Node. This "dispelling attempt" occurs immediately upon selecting the spell for casting - before any target can be chosen. If it succeeds, the spell will fizzle and have no effect. The strength of the dispel is equal to , which means that the formula for calculating its success is as follows: Chance = 50 / (50 + TSCC) × 100 Where "TSCC" is the total (modified) Casting Cost of the spell which the Node is targeting. For example, if attempting to cast a spell with a total of invested (with reductions, if any), the chance of it being countered is as follows: Chance = 50 / (50 + 25) × 100 = 50 / 75 × 100 = 0.66 × 100 = a 66% chance to counter this spell as it's being cast. spells of any kind will bypass this effect entirely. They will never be dispelled by the Sorcery Node regardless of their type or Casting Cost. The Node Mastery Retort also allows a Wizard (and any units under their control) to cast spells from any Realm inside any Node, without being subjected to its dispelling effects. Such Wizards possess a clear advantage in Node combat. Sorcery Node Unit Bonus Aura The Node emits another special aura within its area of influence. All Fantastic Units from the Realm receive a set of very important bonuses while fighting here. These are: * , * , * , * and . Although the enhancement to and Attack Strength only applies if the unit possesses such an attack by default, the Ranged Attack bonus applies to all types of Ranged Attacks, including short-range ones (i.e. ). All Fantastic Units associated with the Realm are affected, regardless of their owner. Other units are not affected in any way. These bonuses are extremely potent, and have several strategic implications. For starters, this means that the original creatures guarding a Sorcery Node (which are all from the Realm by definition) are much harder to defeat than similar creatures encountered in other locations. Furthermore, the fact that this effect also applies in the vicinity of the Sorcery Node means that the entire area is a great place for creatures to mount a defense or an attack. An army comprised mostly or entirely of creatures has a considerable advantage inside this aura. Assaulting an enemy army made up of such creatures, while it is in the vicinity of a Sorcery Node, is thus typically a bad idea, and should be avoided if at all possible. Finally, this means that any -wielding Wizard is encouraged to build Towns within the area of influence of a Sorcery Node, and protect those Town with garrisons of creatures. This will make these Towns much harder to conquer. Controlling Nodes The process of controlling and Melding with a Sorcery Node is identical to that of any other Node. Successfully accomplishing this reveals the Node's entire area of influence as glowing tiles around it, that sparkle with the color of the controlling Wizard. The Node then generates one point of every turn for each such tile, adjusted by the game's Magic Intensity Setting (half if "Weak", 150% if "Powerful" - Insecticide and later patches replace these option names with simply the multiplier value instead). Retorts There are several Retorts available that will boost the amount of acquired from each of a Node's glowing tiles. For Sorcery Nodes, the two Retorts that affect this are Sorcery Mastery and Node Mastery. With either of these Retorts, each glowing tile produces twice as much as it would otherwise. For example, when playing in a "Normal" Magic Intensity world, a Wizard with Sorcery Mastery will get from each glowing tile belonging to a Sorcery Node. The effect from these Retorts is cumulative. Therefore, a Wizard possessing both Sorcery Mastery and Node Mastery will get 4 times as much from each Node tile! This can amount to a massive boost of , and encourages such a Wizard to gain control of as many Sorcery Nodes as they can, as early as they can. Random Effects on Node Output As with any other Node, the output of the Sorcery Node is mostly static, and will remain the same throughout the game. The exceptions occur, as explained in the article on Nodes, through the use of the spell, through acquisition of new Retorts, and as a result of "Conjunction" Events. The most common effect on a Sorcery Node's output is a "Conjunction" of magic: a random Event which affects the power output of all Nodes simultaneously, for a short period of time. Conjunctions Conjunctions are one of the most common random Events in the game, mainly because they are actually a group of multiple similar Events. There is a chance that such an Event will occur on the start of any given turn. A Conjunction will always last for at least 5 turns, after which it will have a cumulative 5% chance of ending naturally every turn. There are three types of Conjunctions that affect Sorcery Node. Of these, Sorcery Conjunctions are obviously best. When these are in play, each tile within each Sorcery Node's area of influence produces twice as much as normal for its controlling Wizard (cumulative with the Retorts above, although all roundings are separate and downward). Naturally, if no Wizard is currently in control of a Sorcery Node, that node produces no for anyone anyway. Conjunctions of Chaos and Conjunctions of Nature, on the other hand, will halve all output of every Sorcery Node while they are in effect. Wizards with many Sorcery Nodes under their control but few other types are therefore in trouble, having a greatly reduced income of . Unfortunately, there is no way to expedite the end of a Conjunction. During a Conjunction of Sorcery, empires with plenty of Sorcery Nodes under their control will usually go on the offensive, or use magic to develop their assets to terrifying strength. During other Conjunctions, such empires are weak and make good targets for a sudden invasion. Paying attention to the types of Nodes controlled by enemy Wizards may thus present strategic opportunities to capitalize on a Conjunction. Although not a "Conjunction" strictly speaking, Mana Short also does fall into this Event category and abides by the same rules as "regular" Conjunctions. During a Mana Short, all sources of are negated, and thus the Sorcery Node will cease to provide any, regardless of any other effects. Once the Event ends, output will immediately return to normal. Category:Terrain Specials Category:Nodes Category:Encounter Zones